31 votes

Pigeon suspected of being Chinese spy released by police in India after being detained for eight months

Posted by Fal
Tags: india, china, crime, pigeons, birds, racing.open water bird, arrests, espionage, police, offbeat, racing.pigeon, source.associated press, short read
https://apnews.com/article/india-chinese-spy-pigeon-f3543790447d4b43d347294e21874bf1

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Title
Indian police clear a suspected Chinese spy pigeon after 8 months in bird lockup
Published
Feb 1 2024
Word count
212 words

6 comments

  1. cmccabe
    (edited )
    Link
    Geopolitics are interesting, but now I really want to look into the sport of open-water bird racing. EDIT: For anyone else interested, I asked a Taiwanese friend of mine about open-sea pigeon...

    Geopolitics are interesting, but now I really want to look into the sport of open-water bird racing.

    EDIT: For anyone else interested, I asked a Taiwanese friend of mine about open-sea pigeon racing and he found this video for me: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sw-v2LgfuoY

    12 votes
  2. [3]
    Eji1700
    Link
    This led me to wonder what % of a pigeon's lifespan that is. Apparently your average wild pigeon is living about 4 years, but they can make it to 15-30 years old. Did not realize they could live...

    This led me to wonder what % of a pigeon's lifespan that is. Apparently your average wild pigeon is living about 4 years, but they can make it to 15-30 years old. Did not realize they could live that long.

    11 votes
    1. [2]
      dirthawker
      Link Parent
      It's similar with raptors. Typical wild lifespan is 5 or 6 years, but in captivity 20-25 is not unusual. They're protected from other predators, get vet care if needed, and have a guaranteed food...

      It's similar with raptors. Typical wild lifespan is 5 or 6 years, but in captivity 20-25 is not unusual. They're protected from other predators, get vet care if needed, and have a guaranteed food supply.

      8 votes
      1. Eji1700
        Link Parent
        It's a little odd but my last place had wild quail that would swing by (gambels i believe) and I guess they only live 1.5 years in the wild and up to 5 in captivity, so I assumed that was more the...

        It's a little odd but my last place had wild quail that would swing by (gambels i believe) and I guess they only live 1.5 years in the wild and up to 5 in captivity, so I assumed that was more the average for birds and that things like Parrots were the exception.

        Suffice it to say i'm shocked pigeons can make it longer than dogs with proper care.

        6 votes
  3. CannibalisticApple
    Link
    This entire article was a delight to read. I got to learn that there's a sport around racing pigeons over water, and that India has arrested two other pigeons on espionage suspicions in the past....

    This entire article was a delight to read. I got to learn that there's a sport around racing pigeons over water, and that India has arrested two other pigeons on espionage suspicions in the past. Including one carrying a direct threat to the prime minister! The world needs more news stories like this where we can all just chuckle at how weird the world can be.

    9 votes
  4. chocobean
    Link
    Police: "Are you a spy?" Pigeon: "Coo, me?" Police: "COO ARE YOU WORKING FOR! Are you planning a coo!?" Pigeon: "I'll never tell coo" also today I learned pigeon racing is totally still a thing....

    Police: "Are you a spy?"

    Pigeon: "Coo, me?"

    Police: "COO ARE YOU WORKING FOR! Are you planning a coo!?"

    Pigeon: "I'll never tell coo"

    also today I learned pigeon racing is totally still a thing. Here's a short post about a Taiwanese winning pigeon - cute picture and bonus pet pig

    7 votes